The secret to glossy hair in midlife? POP A PILL!

PILLS that promise thicker, shinier locks are nothing new — but supplements combining proteins, minerals and vitamins that contribute to hair health are enjoying an unprecedented boom.

The global market for nutricosmetics — digestible beauty products — valued at £2.5 billion in 2013, is predicted to more than double to £5.5billion by 2020. And of those who have used beauty supplements, more than a third did so to strengthen hair, say analysts Mintel.

Championed by Hollywood celebrities such as Jennifer Aniston, the idea of taking a supplement to achieve longer, glossier or healthier-looking hair is gaining legions of fans.

Reality star Kim Kardashian’s stylist Jen Atkin has created her own brand, while Instagram is awash with TV personalities posing with chewy hair vitamins. At the same time, the concepts of beauty and health have become more entwined, with more of us accepting the thought of ‘ingestible beauty’ — products you eat, rather than apply, to look good.

It comes as no surprise that the state of our hair reflects our health, with every woman aware that if we’re unwell or eating badly, our hair will look lacklustre.

‘Hair is highly metabolically active,’ says dermatologist Dr Martin Wade at The London Skin and Hair Clinic. ‘So it’s one of the first structures to suffer in times of stress, illness or poor nutrition.’

Ideally, our diet should provide all the nutrients we need. ‘A supplement is always my second choice,’ says consultant trichologist Iain Sallis, a director at The Institute of Trichologists. ‘Natural is always best.’ However, he says, a lack of iron, protein or vitamin B12 can slow hair growth, and taking a supplement can help.

A word of warning: if your hair is in very poor condition, see a specialist to determine the cause, as even the finest supplement won’t help if it doesn’t contain the nutrition you need. Some women have low iron levels, for instance, but most hair pills don’t contain enough to remedy a deficiency.

For those who just want to keep hair gorgeous, our experts break down the ingredients in four supplements to help you choose which will give you head-turning hair . . .

FIT FOR A REALITY STAR

Ouai Haircare Dry Hair Supplement, one a day, £26 for 30 tablets, johnlewis.com BEST FOR: Mending brittle hair.

ACTIVE INGREDIENTS: Vitamin B12, biotin (vitamin B7), Pantothenic acid (Vitamin B5).

EXPERT VERDICT: These were created by Kim Kardashian’s hair stylist, Jen Atkin. There is some evidence that low vitamin B12 can cause hair shedding, and taking pantothenic acid, a B vitamin, in tablet form could help strengthen hair if you’re deficient.

Vitamin B7, also known as biotin, is necessary for key metabolic processes.

But Mr Sallis notes that it won’t improve your hair if you lack sufficient protein.

He says: ‘The vitamin Bs, including biotin, act as a catalyst for protein. But if you don’t have enough protein in your diet, it won’t catalyse sulphur-rich amino acids [methionine and cysteine] to make more hair.

‘Cysteine is primarily used in the body as an antioxidant, in your immune system. And then, it’s used in your skin, and after that, in your nails and hair way down the line. So you need plenty of it.’

SWEET TREATS

Hairburst Chewable Heart Hair Vitamins, two daily, £19.19 for 60 tablets, boots.com

BEST FOR: Maintaining growth. ACTIVE INGREDIENTS: B vitamins, selenium, zinc.

EXPERT VERDICT: How many of us have bought supplements with good intentions then, on finding they taste foul and are the size of horse pills, let them go out of date? These berry chews are ‘a fun way to absorb nutrients’, says Dr Wade. However, too much of a good thing can be bad, so never take more than directed. Selenium, for instance, is good for your locks but in excess causes hair loss.

JEN’S SECRET WEAPON

Viviscal Hair Growth Programme, £49.99 for 60 tablets, hollandandbarrett.com BEST FOR: Strengthening and promoting growth. ACTIVE INGREDIENTS: Amino Mar C (marine protein), biotin, zinc.

EXPERT VERDICT: Jennifer Aniston loves these. ‘The secret formula, Amino Mar C, is cartilage and mollusc extract,’ says Mr Sallis.

‘When you break that down, you’ve got cysteine and methionine, sulphur-rich amino acids, which make keratin. This gives hair rigidity and strength.’

Viviscal has an impressive seal of approval — Dr Wade recommends it to certain clients. Clinical studies have concluded that it ‘safely and effectively promotes significant hair growth in women with temporary hair thinning’.

Unlike some supplements, it only has a few key ingredients as squeezing in too many can be counter-productive. Mr Sallis says: ‘If you have iron and zinc together, one binds to the other, so if you take them together, you won’t absorb either.’

THE CULT CLASSIC

Philip Kingsley Trichotherapy Tricho Complex Hair Nutrition Formula, £45 for 90 tablets, feelunique.com

BEST FOR: Combating hair loss. KEY ACTIVE INGREDIENTS: Iron, L-lysine, B12 and Vitamin C

EXPERT VERDICT: ‘The main thrust of this formula is the iron which I see a lack of in women with hair loss,’ says Dr Wade. But if you are medically deficient, Dr Wade says you’re likely to need iron tablets rather than a hair supplement. It’s also wise to consult a doctor, as too much iron can be harmful.

This is good, says Mr Sallis: ‘I know people who’ve taken it, and it corrected mineral deficiencies.’